Auto insurance is legally required for you to drive, so you should definitely have it. If can be a total pain to figure out which auto insurance policy is best for your particular situation. The tips that follow will give you some inside information on how auto insurance works.
If you can afford it, pay your insurance bill once a year rather than every month. A monthly payment plan may cost you as much as five dollars a month above what you would pay with less-frequent payments. This may seem insignificant, but this can drain your wallet. With everything else you pay, this can become a strain. The fewer payments you have to worry about, the better.
Know exactly what you want and need before you start insurance shopping. Each state has different requirements, so be sure to do some research. Understanding the basic concepts will help you determine which policies really give you good coverage before you make a final selection.
Take time to list your car’s safety features in order to get the cheapest insurance rate for your car. These safety features may save your insurance company money in the future, so listing these things could warrant you extra discounts. Even with an older car you can get these discounts if you include these safety features at a later date.
In order to keep your auto insurance rates low, you should never allow your coverage to lapse. Going from one carrier to another or from one policy to another, you can easily create gaps in your coverage. Insurance companies will use the gaps as an excuse to raise your rates.
Additional insurance coverage increases your insurance premium. If you choose to include car rental coverage in the event your car is in an accident, this will cost you additional money in premiums. Decide whether the amount you pay for this protection is worth it to you. It is likely that you hardly ever use it, yet you are still paying for it. Before you remove coverage for specific events or amounts in your policy, consider why you chose to include the coverage to begin with. If you believe that you can find an alternative to rental car coverage in the event your car is not available to you during a repair, then you don’t need to pay for that coverage.
Many different things come into play when determining your auto insurance rates. Some of these factors are demographic in nature, such as your age, gender and marital status. By knowing exactly what will affect your insurance rates, you will be better able to decide whether you are getting a good deal.
A great tip for auto insurance is to get 100/200/100 level coverage for liability if you have a good car with a few assets to protect. Most states set requirements for drivers to maintain certain minimum levels of liability coverage, so make sure that you are properly covered.
In case you ever have to file a claim to your insurance company, know that insurance companies want a lot of detailed documentation. You can use a cell phone to take pictures of the location and damage of a crash. Another option would be to keep a camera with you all the time just in case you should need it in an emergency like this.
Never drive without insurance. If you are in an accident, good auto insurance will protect you from a big financial hit. These tips should be used to help you along with your search for an insurance company.